Tension has heightened in parts of Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State following allegations by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) that a herder and several cows were killed during attacks on Fulani settlements in the area.
The Benue State chairman of MACBAN, Ardo Risku Muhammad, told journalists in Makurdi on Sunday that two separate communities—Otukpo-Nobi and Ondo-Ogobia were involved in incidents that led to the death of a pastoralist and the loss of livestock.
According to Muhammad, the crisis began on Thursday when youths from Otukpo-Nobi allegedly invaded a Fulani camp and killed 15 cows.
The owner of the cattle, identified as Alhaji Hassan Sule, reportedly visited the settlement the following day in the company of his young son to assess the loss.
“After inspecting the damages on Friday, he was returning when some youths from Ondo-Ogobia in Ugboju, Otukpo LGA, ambushed and killed him,” Muhammad alleged.
He added that Sule’s son narrowly escaped and alerted other herders who later discovered Sule’s body at the scene.
Muhammad further claimed that while herders were still gathered at the site, two men believed to be linked to the killing approached from the Ondo axis, apparently intending to retrieve the corpse.
On sighting the herders, they reportedly fled, abandoning a motorcycle and a locally made gun. One of the suspects, however, was apprehended and handed over to security operatives.
“But after three hours, we heard the police at Ogoli-Ugboju Divisional Headquarters had released him,” Muhammad said, expressing concern that the alleged premature release of the suspect had worsened tension in the area.
He appealed to Governor Hyacinth Alia and the state Commissioner of Police to intervene urgently, insisting that a thorough investigation was needed to prevent the situation from escalating.
Muhammad also alleged that the two communities involved had held a meeting prior to the incident, a development he claimed to have reported to security agencies without any response.
Chairman of Otukpo LGA, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed rising tension over the killing of the herder, although he said he had not received information about the reported killing of 15 cows.
Ogiri explained that the council authorities, alongside security agencies, were working to restore calm, adding that the paramount ruler of the Idoma nation, the Och’Idoma, had waded into the matter.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Udeme Edet, said she had not received any briefing from the Divisional Police Officer of the affected area.
